I worked at a primary school last year, and assisted with a second grade research project: The Animal Research Project. The students took a traditional approach to basic fact finding and researching skills. The students were responsible for finding the animal of choice’s habitat, characteristics, eating habits, etc. The final product was presenting a paper book to the class. This animal research project could be recreated by incorporating technology. In addition to the basic research gathering tools, students could use a smart board, kidspiration, and video clips to present their findings. They could also find a webcam recording of their animal in its habitat. By incorporating digital researching tools at a young level. students will be able to research, and develop their ideas with ease in the future.
Lesson Plan Ideas:
Goal: To teach students the process of summarizing information, and presenting the facts they discovered through research.
Objective: Students will research an animal of choice, analyzing characteristics of animal through digital resources.
Standard:CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.2.8 Recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question.
Objective: Students will present their animal facts through a digital story piece.
Standard:CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.2.6 With guidance and support from adults, use a variety of digital tools to produce and publish writing, including in collaboration with peers.
Incorporating Bloom’s Taxonomy:
Remembering: Students will identify facts about their animal given choices (online encyclopedia, zoo websites, etc.) Through fun, colorful fact finding, students will be more interested in the research.
Understanding: Students will summarize their research findings, and practice paraphrasing.
Applying: Students will apply basic knowledge that they have learned, and share it through an online graphic organizer, kidspiration, where they can add color, pictures, and sound.
Analysing: Students will participate in a compare/contrast activity, sharing varying animal characteristics with their peers. Students will validate the difference in species.
Evaluating: Students will choose a video clip to attach to presentation, by reviewing various clips, and determining which video will be most educational for presentation.
Creating: Students will create their digital presentation to share with their peers by including all research elements that they have explored.
Autumn Kirker LSC 5541 2/23/13
What is the ISP?
I began to love Carol Kuhlthau’s Information Search Model last semester during my School Library Collaboration class. It helped me to understand the inquiry process with ease, and I always had Kuhlthau’s chart close by. I now find myself going through the emotional stages, and feel victorious with each step. I find it amazing that a model designed decades ago, is still importantly relevant to our research process today. I recently used the inquiry process to complete a project for LSC 5530’s class assignment “Writing a Grant Letter.” For this assignment, I had to research a local politician, and advocate for a school library issue. I had to find a government bill that I felt should be supported by my politician of choice. I found myself scared of the new topic of research, then interested as I gained information, focused as the ideas were coming together, and accomplished once the product was completed. I sent my letter to my local politician, and also received a handsome grade for the grant letter. During the process, I read the required reading material, surfed various government websites, phoned political influenced friends, and encouraged co-workers to proofread my letter. Kuhlthau’s Information Search Model is a great inquiry tool to reference with students when working on a research project. I tutor high school students, and I feel that this model would be a helpful reference for any research based project. I assist many students working on essays, senior papers, etc. The ISP model would be a valuable tool for a student to refer to each step of the process for a reassuring measure. The emotional stages would confirm the feelings that are felt with each stage. I believe that this model could prove to be a major component to a successful research paper, if the student has access, and can follow the easy chart.
LSC 5541
Autumn Kirker
LSC 5541
3/3/13
Rethinking A Bird Unit
I worked at a primary school last year, and assisted with a second grade research project: The Animal Research Project. The students took a traditional approach to basic fact finding and researching skills. The students were responsible for finding the animal of choice’s habitat, characteristics, eating habits, etc. The final product was presenting a paper book to the class. This animal research project could be recreated by incorporating technology. In addition to the basic research gathering tools, students could use a smart board, kidspiration, and video clips to present their findings. They could also find a webcam recording of their animal in its habitat. By incorporating digital researching tools at a young level. students will be able to research, and develop their ideas with ease in the future.
Lesson Plan Ideas:
Goal: To teach students the process of summarizing information, and presenting the facts they discovered through research.
Objective: Students will research an animal of choice, analyzing characteristics of animal through digital resources.
Standard: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.2.8 Recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question.
Objective: Students will present their animal facts through a digital story piece.
Standard: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.2.6 With guidance and support from adults, use a variety of digital tools to produce and publish writing, including in collaboration with peers.
Incorporating Bloom’s Taxonomy:
Remembering: Students will identify facts about their animal given choices (online encyclopedia, zoo websites, etc.) Through fun, colorful fact finding, students will be more interested in the research.
Understanding: Students will summarize their research findings, and practice paraphrasing.
Applying: Students will apply basic knowledge that they have learned, and share it through an online graphic organizer, kidspiration, where they can add color, pictures, and sound.
Analysing: Students will participate in a compare/contrast activity, sharing varying animal characteristics with their peers. Students will validate the difference in species.
Evaluating: Students will choose a video clip to attach to presentation, by reviewing various clips, and determining which video will be most educational for presentation.
Creating: Students will create their digital presentation to share with their peers by including all research elements that they have explored.
Autumn Kirker
LSC 5541
2/23/13
What is the ISP?
I began to love Carol Kuhlthau’s Information Search Model last semester during my School Library Collaboration class. It helped me to understand the inquiry process with ease, and I always had Kuhlthau’s chart close by. I now find myself going through the emotional stages, and feel victorious with each step. I find it amazing that a model designed decades ago, is still importantly relevant to our research process today.
I recently used the inquiry process to complete a project for LSC 5530’s class assignment “Writing a Grant Letter.” For this assignment, I had to research a local politician, and advocate for a school library issue. I had to find a government bill that I felt should be supported by my politician of choice. I found myself scared of the new topic of research, then interested as I gained information, focused as the ideas were coming together, and accomplished once the product was completed. I sent my letter to my local politician, and also received a handsome grade for the grant letter. During the process, I read the required reading material, surfed various government websites, phoned political influenced friends, and encouraged co-workers to proofread my letter.
Kuhlthau’s Information Search Model is a great inquiry tool to reference with students when working on a research project. I tutor high school students, and I feel that this model would be a helpful reference for any research based project. I assist many students working on essays, senior papers, etc. The ISP model would be a valuable tool for a student to refer to each step of the process for a reassuring measure. The emotional stages would confirm the feelings that are felt with each stage. I believe that this model could prove to be a major component to a successful research paper, if the student has access, and can follow the easy chart.